Riad Salameh’s lawyer and President of the Paris Bar Association Pierre-Olivier Sur has denied the accusations made by French online media platform Mediapart which allege that Salameh has a “secret plan to neutralize the French judges’ investigation,” an accusation Sur has called “an aberration.”
In a press release, Sur stressed that his client had been “approached” without giving additional information to this point, highlighting that “it was, in fact, a money extortion attempt.”
Salameh’s lawyer has also condemned the repeated violations of secrecy and the publication of seized documents without any context.
Press Release
“Among the false rumors, misinformation and untruths spread about governor Riad Salameh, we have discovered on Thursday November 16, through the French online media platform Mediapart, that ‘a project aimed at corrupting the French judiciary’ was reportedly about to be undertaken.
However, if Riad Salameh really was approached, the amount requested—a contract of over 2 million Euros—is proof that it was an attempt at money extortion.
Indeed, no one can deny the fact that my client has been stalked and harassed, and was therefore in a weakened state, attracting all kinds of blackmailers and naysayers.
Evidently, Riad Salameh never gave further information.
The seized and published documents which, again, violate secrecy, are unexplained, and have no context, further substantiating the fact the entire matter is pure delirium.
President of the Paris Bar Association, Pierre-Olivier Sur”
